The Robot Gardener

I like to get my hands dirty. I follow the
cultivator among the beds of lettuce and
down to the vats of algae and fish.
The cultivator is like a little mole.

Like plants it is powered by the sun,
but it moves among them and leaves
behind the tatters of plants we don't want.
I examine this detritus with my hands.

The cultivator is very old. It knows when
it needs repairs and takes itself in.
It's programs hardly need any upgrades.
Most people don't notice it.

I like to pick my own tomatoes and to
pull up my own carrots. It's not that
I don't like the machines, like some.
I just like to understand what we depend on.